After you buy, inherit or receive land in Bihar, your name must be entered in the jamabandi. This is mutation, or dakhil-kharij: the earlier holder's name is removed (kharij) and yours is entered (dakhil). The procedure is laid down in the Bihar Land Mutation Rules, 2012. The rule numbers and time limits below are from the Rules as amended in 2017; check whether any later amendment applies.
First, learn these words
- Jamabandi: the government's register that says whose name a piece of land is in, for paying land tax.
- Mutation / Dakhil-kharij: changing the name in the jamabandi. "Kharij" means removing the old owner's name, "dakhil" means adding yours.
- Registry / Kewala / Deed: the paper made at the registry office when land is bought, sold or gifted.
- Rent receipt (Lagan rasid): the receipt you get when you pay land tax to the government.
- Circle Officer (CO / Anchal Adhikari): the officer at the block-level revenue office who decides mutation.
- Karmachari: the revenue worker who checks the land and the papers and reports to the CO.
- Objection (Aapatti): when someone tells the office, "Do not change the name; I have a claim."
- Working day: a day the office is open. Sundays and holidays are not counted.
- Correction slip (Shuddhi patra): the order slip that tells the record office to change the name.
- Condonation of delay: a request to the officer to accept your late application, with the reason for the delay.
- Parimarjan: the online service to correct a mistake in the jamabandi, such as a wrong name or area.
- DCLR: the senior officer above the CO. If the CO says no, you can go to the DCLR. This is called an appeal.
- Revision: going to the next senior officer (Collector) if the DCLR also says no.
In simple words: 6 easy steps
- Look first. Open https://emutation.bihar.gov.in/biharBhumireport/MutationStatusNew.aspx and search with your deed number. If a case is already running, just keep checking it.
- Collect papers. Keep your registry (deed), the last rent receipt and an ID ready. For land from parents, keep the death certificate and family details.
- Apply. Log in on https://biharbhumi.bihar.gov.in/Biharbhumi/UserLogin.aspx (register first if you are new), fill the mutation form and upload the papers. Save the receipt you get.
- Wait for the notice. The office puts up a notice for 14 days so that anyone can object.
- See the result. Without objection the office should decide in 18 working days; with objection, in 60 working days.
- Check your name. Open https://emutation.bihar.gov.in/biharBhumireport/ViewJamabandi.aspx. Your name should now be there. If there is a mistake in it, apply for correction at https://parimarjanplus.bihar.gov.in/ParimarjanNew/userDashboard.aspx. If the application is rejected, you have 30 days to appeal to the DCLR; revenue court cases can be tracked at https://biharbhumi.bihar.gov.in/Biharbhumi/RCMS/RCMSDefault.aspx.
The details of each step, with the rule numbers, are below.
Who can apply
Any person who acquires an interest in a jamabandi, or part of it, can apply to the Circle Officer (CO) of the area in Form-IA (Rule 3(1)). If more than 90 days have passed since the interest was acquired, a petition for condonation of delay in Form-IAA, giving reasons, is also needed (Rule 3(1A)).
Where land is bought through a registered deed and the registration office sends the deed online, mutation is to be started suo motu within three working days (Rule 3(3)). Even then, check the status.
Documents
Self-attested copies, depending on how the land was acquired (Rule 3(2)):
- Registered sale, gift or exchange deed
- Earlier deeds or orders, if an earlier transfer was never mutated
- Will with probate order
- Court order or decree
- Registered partition deed, or the consent document for partition by mutual consent
- Documents showing death and succession, for inherited land
- Last rent receipt, if available
How to apply
- Register and log in on the Bihar Bhumi user login page, fill the mutation form and upload the documents. Online filing applies in notified anchals; elsewhere, apply at the RTPS counter or a revenue camp (Rule 3(4)). Keep the acknowledgement in Form-IV.
- The CO orders an enquiry. A general notice is pasted locally and at the Panchayat Bhawan, and specific notices go to interested persons. The notice period is 14 days (Rule 5).
- The Karmachari reports within 3 days of the enquiry order, and the Circle Inspector verifies and recommends within 3 working days (Rule 5).
- The CO decides. If the petition is rejected, the grounds are recorded and you are informed in Form-XIVA (Rule 8).
- After the order, a correction slip is issued in Form-XIV within 3 working days and the jamabandi is updated (Rules 9 and 10). A rent receipt is then issued in your name (Rule 10B).
An example
This is an imaginary example to explain the procedure; it is not a real case.
Sunita buys 10 decimals of land in a village of Patna district through a registered sale deed. Four months later she finds that the jamabandi still shows the seller's name.
- Check first: she searches the mutation status page by deed number. No case has been started.
- Apply: she logs in on Bihar Bhumi and files the mutation petition with the registered deed and the last rent receipt. Since more than 90 days have passed since the purchase, she also files a petition for condonation of delay in Form-IAA, giving the reason (Rule 3(1A)).
- Notice: the CO orders an enquiry and notice is issued for 14 days. The seller's brother files an objection.
- Order: because an objection was filed, the CO is to decide within 60 working days (Rule 6). He allows the petition.
- Record: a correction slip is issued, the jamabandi is updated, and a rent receipt is issued in Sunita's name.
Had the CO rejected the petition, Sunita could appeal to the DCLR within 30 days (Rule 11).
Time limits for the Circle Officer
- No objection: within 18 working days of the petition (Rule 6).
- Objection received: within 60 working days (Rule 6).
- Camp court: undisputed cases the same day; disputed cases are heard at the next camp or sent to the regular court (Rule 7).
Check the status
Track the application on the mutation status page and, after the order, see the updated record on the jamabandi page.
If mutation is rejected
- Appeal: to the Land Reforms Deputy Collector (DCLR) within 30 days of the CO's order; delay can be condoned for sufficient reason. The appeal is to be disposed of within 30 working days (Rule 11).
- Revision: to the Collector or Additional Collector within 30 days of the DCLR's order (Rule 12).
- A non-judicial stamp of Rs 50 is required on the memorandum of appeal or revision (Rule 17).
- Where an order of the revenue authorities is without jurisdiction or passed without hearing, a writ petition before the Patna High Court may be considered.
Mutation updates the revenue record; it does not decide ownership. A dispute over title is decided by the civil court.
Frequently asked questions
How long does mutation take in Bihar?
Under Rule 6 of the Bihar Land Mutation Rules, 2012, the Circle Officer is to decide within 18 working days if there is no objection, and within 60 working days if an objection is received.
I bought land more than 90 days ago. Can I still apply?
Yes. Along with the mutation petition, file a petition for condonation of delay in Form-IAA giving the reasons (Rule 3(1A)).
Is mutation automatic after registry?
Where the registration office sends the deed online, mutation is to be started suo motu within three working days (Rule 3(3)). Check the status on the mutation status page.
How long is the objection period?
The notice period is 14 days (Rule 5(6)).
Mutation was rejected. What next?
Appeal to the DCLR within 30 days of the order (Rule 11), and then revision to the Collector or Additional Collector within 30 days (Rule 12).
Does mutation make me the owner?
No. Mutation records possession for revenue purposes. Ownership depends on the title documents and, in a dispute, is decided by the civil court.
What fees are fixed by the Rules?
The Rules fix a non-judicial stamp of Rs 50 on an appeal or revision memorandum (Rule 17) and Rs 10 per page for certified copies, issued within 7 working days (Rule 18). Check any portal or service charge on Bihar Bhumi.
My name is entered but with a mistake. What now?
Errors in an existing jamabandi are corrected through the Parimarjan service on Bihar Bhumi, not by a fresh mutation.
This article is general information about mutation in Bihar and is not legal advice or solicitation, in accordance with the rules of the Bar Council of India. Portal services and rules change; check the current position on the official portal.
Related on this site: Mutation rejected after jamabandi split · How to buy land in Patna: simple guide · Mutation & Land Records in Bihar · Mutation Appeal to the DCLR · Jamabandi correction through Parimarjan · How to check land before buying
Official sources (links checked 4 November 2026): Bihar Land Mutation Rules, 2012 (LBSNAA) · Bihar Bhumi · Mutation status · View Jamabandi
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